What’s more American than a hamburger and some fries? A hamburger and fries in under a minute, and without having to get out of your car. That is to say, the most American thing ever might just be McDonald’s, which maybe didn’t invent the concept of fast food, but sure as hell popularized it. The Founder is a movie about the man who launched the little restaurant (with golden arches) that could, and stars Michael Keaton, Laura Dern, John Carroll Lynch, and Nick Offerman. The first trailer for the movie has just been released, and, sure, it looks pretty American.
Keaton stars as Ray Kroc, who starts out in the film as a down-on-his-luck milkshake machine salesman and transforms into a steely bastard who buys the land out from under the original McDonald’s and says things like “Contracts are like hearts: they’re made to be broken.” Offerman, sans-mustache, plays Dick McDonald, the co-founder of the first McDonald’s and the eventual victim of Kroc’s greed — along with his brother, Mac, whose played by Lynch. (Also, Mac McDonald?)
It’s a trailer that begins by making the film look like a typical biopic and ends by making Kroc look like one of the most awful dudes to ever have an “inspired by a true story” story written about him.
The Founder will see a wide release on August 5. Watch the trailer below.